Lots of fun crazyiness this weekend!

I participated in my first 5K obstacle course yesterday called the Warrior Dash in Lake Elsinore. It was certainly different than what I'm used to. I found myself looking forward to each obstacle, jumping over haystacks and junked cars, leaping over a fire, and crawling through poopy smelling mud whilst avoiding getting scratched up by barbed wire. And at the end, I was rewarded with a turkey leg... a true warrior's meal! It was great weather and had great company as well.

Today, I tackled a 17 mi run around Harbor Island. The weather couldn't have been any better: overcast and cool with a slight breeze to keep me from overheating. It was a great run, my legs felt pretty good, and I felt like I had the stamina and endurance to power through it. I realized (or maybe rediscovered) that running is as much training your body as it is training your mentality. During the last 3 miles of my run, I kept thinking to myself, "3 miles, that's completely cake to you." But at the same time, I also thought, "but I just put 14 miles down before that.. I can't run anymore..." Running long distances can really mess with your mind and it certainly can bring you to tears. I have to remind myself that both my mind and body is strong and to not let the negative thinking convince me otherwise. I've found that each day that I run, I become stronger mentally as well as physically.

17 mi run - Harbor Island

Chilly, but gorgeous morning for an 8 mi run up the Hill

Every time I start off at the bottom of the N. Torrey Pines Hill, I have a sense of determination to get to the top as quickly as possible for a couple of reasons.  It is cold, windy, and at the hour I start running, the sun hasn't peeked over the hills yet to provide some warmth.  The other reason is I know when I'm heading back down, I'm going to be treated to a gorgeous view of the coast.  This helps me get up in the morning.

8 mi run - N. Torrey Pines / La Jolla

We did it!!!

We did it!! Thanks to Tom Morrison for pushing the donations to the $1000 mark! And thanks to everyone for your continued support. ♥